Carrier for hook type coat hanger

ABSTRACT

Sheet of plastic, or similar material capable of being comfortably carried in the palm of the hand is provided with slotted spaced openings to support the wire hook of one or more coat hangers for transporting garments.

United States Patent Bradshaw [4 1 June 20, 1972 [54] CARRIER FOR HOOK TYPE COAT HANGER Mlchnel Bradshaw, [546 West Mulberry, Kokomo, Ind. 46%| 22 Filed: Mnrch4, 1910 21 Appl.No.: 16,412

[72] Inventor:

[52] [1.8. CI ..224/45 T [5 l Int. Cl. ..A47g 25/06 [58] Field oISearch ..224/45.l4, 45.17, 57, 56; 294/26 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 4/1915 Palmer .214156 Galazin.. ..224/45. 1 7

Beaurgard ..224/$6 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 27 l ,625 6/ 927 Great Britain ..224/45. 1 4

Primary Examiner-Robert G. Sheridan Assistant ExaminerFrank E. Werner Attorney-Christen, Sabol & O'Brien ABSTRACT Sheet of plastic, or similar material capable of being comfortably carried in the palm of the hand is provided with slotted spaced openings to support the wire hook of one or more coat hangers for transporting garments.

4 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTED Z i972 3,670,937

IN VE N TOR FI 2 MICHAEL s. BRADSHAW Br AT TORNEYS CARRIER FOR HOOK TYPE COAT HANGER This invention relates to a device for carrying clothes supported on coat hangers on occasions when it is preferable not to remove the clothes from the hangers because of the short distances involved, or because of the desirability of avoiding rumpling the garments or causing creases that would result from packing them in boxes or luggage.

On many occasions, such as travel by car, by air or other public vehicle it is possible to put one or more garments on wire hangers and protect them by a cover of the type which has an opening at the top through which the hook portion of the hangers project. Most vehicles, public and private are equipped with hooks or rods which enable the clothes to be transported in their hanging position and, even if they cannot be hung it is usually possible to find space for lying them out flat during travel.

In addition, dry cleaning establishments almost universally furnish processed garments hanging on cheap wire hangers, usually covered with a paper, or plastic, bag covering everything but the upwardly projecting hook portion of the hanger.

The problem with which the present invention is concerned is, the fact that a certain amount of hand carrying of the hanger-mounted articles is involved and the fact that the wire hook portion of a hanger can cause painful discomfort to the fingers, or palm of the hand, depending on the number of hangers being carried and the weight of the load involved.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a device for carrying coat hangers which will enable the weight of the wire hook portion to be distributed over a major portion of the hand to eliminate the inconvenience and discomfort usually accompanying the transporting of garments for short distances while on hangers.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device for use in the transporting of loaded coat hangers which can be fabricated from inexpensive materials such as heavy paper, plastic, or similar materials which can be used to convey advertising messages, or the like.

For a further understanding of the invention, the following specification should be read in connection with the annexed drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred fonn of device in accordance with the invention, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are modified forms of the invention.

In FIG. 1 of the drawing only the upper portion of coat hanger, indicated generally by numeral 10, is shown, this portion comprising the upwardly projecting hook II which is usually formed with the triangular body portion 12 from a single piece of wire, one end 13 being twisted around the base of the hook, the other end terminating at the free end 14 of the hook. In this connection, it should be noted that the usefulness of the present invention is not limited to all-wire hangers but is designed for use with any hanger of the type having an upwardly projecting hook, with or without a reverse hook on the end as in 27, which is generally semi-circular and formed of heavy wire which, in some cases, supports a body portion of wood, or even molded plastic upon which the garment may be draped or otherwise supported.

In the preferred form the device comprising this invention comprise a sheet 15 of material such as sheet plastic, or paper treated for strengthening which is generally rectangular in shape having parallel side margins 16 and end margins 17 which, in the form shown in FIG. 1, are also shown as being straight. The sheet 15 is also preferably formed with an armate, upwardly concaved cross-section as viewed from either of the end margins 17. In the center of the sheet there are provided two openings 18, longitudinally spaced from each other and slotted in a transverse direction. The distance between the openings is such that the hook portion 11 of an hanger may easily be inserted into the two openings, as shown, so that the weight of the hanger may be supported by the device, yet the distance between them should not be so close that the hanger will cut throu the material between the openings. Generally it IS preferab e that this distance be less than the diameter 0 modate a plurality of hangers both in quantity and in design.

The arcuate cross-section of the sheet 15 serves two purposes. It adds strength in the longitudinal direction to resist bending of the sheet; thus makes it possible to use a thinner sheet of material than if it were flat; and it provides greater comfort when held by the fingers or palm, of the hand.

In the form of the invention shown in FIG. 2, the sheet of material 19 may also comprise an elongated piece of plastic or other similar material, having parallel side margins 20 and, in this case, rounded end margins 21. However, the normal configuration of the cross-section of the sheet is flat and thus, the thickness of the sheet would preferably be heavier in order to preserve the longitudinal stiffness of the material. The sheet is provided with spaced transversely slotted openings 22 for the reception of one or more coat hanger hooks.

In both of the above described forms of the invention the length of the sheets 15 or 19 is not especially critical but, since they are intended to facilitate the carrying of coat hangers, it is obvious that any length greatly in excess of the width of the palm of the human hand would be superfluous. As an added feature, it would be possible ti imprint advertising material on the surface of the article, or in the case of plastic, mold indicia in the surface thereof.

Additionally, a portion of the surface, such as that indicated by numeral 23, may be roughened or treated to receive pen or pencil markings, either for advertising purposes, or for identification of the owner of the garments.

In the modification shown in FIG. 3,'a fairly long, but narrow sheet of flexible material 24 is employed. Near each end of the strip of material an opening 25 is provided, these openings being slotted to accommodate more than one hanger hook and extending transversely and angularly with respect to the length of the strip 24. When the strip is doubled over to bring the ends together the hanger hook is inserted through the aligned slotted openings and a loop 26 is formed, through which the palm of the hand can be inserted for carrying one or more hangers without difficulty. The angular arrangement of the slotted openings permits easier insertion of an additional, one or more, hangers ifthere is already one in place.

Having described several forms in which the invention may be practiced it will be evident that various modifications and improvements may be made which would come within the scope of the annexed claims.

I claim:

1. The combination of a hanger and a device for manually carrying clothes supported on said coat hanger that is of the type which includes an upwardly projecting generally senticylindrical open-ended wire hook, said device comprising an elongated sheet of semi-rigid sheet material having a generally semi-circular cross-section to resist longitudinal bending provided with two spaced slotted openings arranged generally transversely with respect to the length of the elongated strip and equidistant from the center line thereof for receiving said hook therethrough to support one or more coat hangers thereby, the distance between the slotted openings being less than the diameter of said hook, the width of said sheet being approximately one-half the length of the human fingers to distribute the weight of a coat hanger when manually carried.

2. The invention defined in claim I, wherein said device is made of a plastic material, and said slotted openings are spaced from each other a distance sufficient to prevent the material between the slots being severed while supporting a wire hook engaged by the slots.

3. The invention defined in claim 2, wherein said distance between the slotted openings is less than the diameter of a hook and greater than the radius thereof.

4. The invention defined in claim 2, wherein the length of said sheet material is approximately the width of a human hand. 

1. The combination of a hanger and a device for manually carrying clothes supported on said coat hanger that is of the type which includes an upwardly projecting generally semicylindrical open-ended wire hook, said device comprising an elongated sheet of semi-rigid sheet material having a generally semi-circular cross-section to resist longitudinal bending provided with two spaced slotted openings arranged generally transversely with rEspect to the length of the elongated strip and equidistant from the center line thereof for receiving said hook therethrough to support one or more coat hangers thereby, the distance between the slotted openings being less than the diameter of said hook, the width of said sheet being approximately one-half the length of the human fingers to distribute the weight of a coat hanger when manually carried.
 2. The invention defined in claim 1, wherein said device is made of a plastic material, and said slotted openings are spaced from each other a distance sufficient to prevent the material between the slots being severed while supporting a wire hook engaged by the slots.
 3. The invention defined in claim 2, wherein said distance between the slotted openings is less than the diameter of a hook and greater than the radius thereof.
 4. The invention defined in claim 2, wherein the length of said sheet material is approximately the width of a human hand. 